Yang Ye’s face darkened as soon as he started the Imperial Cloud Shuttle.

Because just starting it up required 100 violet crystals!

100!

That was just the cost to start it up. After a little bit of calculation, Yang Ye determined that it would cost at least 300 violet crystals per hour for it to maintain high speed flight while remaining concealed.

Since he’d arrived at the Central Divine Prefecture, he’d only gather around 7,000 violet crystals after extorting, plundering, and receiving them from Snowy. In other words, his current wealth could only power the cloud shuttle for around 20 hours.

At this moment, he realized that this thing wasn’t something an ordinary person could afford to use.

Even though it was costly and required a truly huge number of violet crystals, Yang Ye had to admit that it was worth it. He’d given it a try, and even a Quasi Emperor would find it difficult to do anything to the Imperial Cloud Shuttle. As for its speed, it was practically on par with his own speed!

In short, his chances of leading the students to safety had definitely grown much higher with the assistance of the Imperial Cloud Shuttle in his possession.

As for the violet crystals it required, he’d decided that he would request reimbursement from Xiao Bieli!

It didn’t take long for Yang Ye and the others to arrive deep within a mountain range.

Yang Ye’s brows suddenly knit together because he heard the sounds of battle.

They were found? Yang Ye hurriedly commanded the Imperial Cloud Shuttle to shoot forward.

Zi Nan, Qiu Yuan, and the others were in confrontation with a group at the foot of a mountain. It wasn’t a group of over 200 that stood before them, it was a group of over 500. All of them were students of White Deer Academy.

Zi Nan gazed coldly at the student who led the group before her, “Gu Yuncheng, are you betraying the academy?”

The student called Gu Yuncheng laughed coldly and said, “Zi Nan, just a Half-Saint came to save us. How childish are you?”

Zi Nan looked Gu Yuncheng in the eyes, “Gu Yuncheng, you were training outside the academy, so you don’t know anything about Yang Ye, but I do. I have to tell you that he isn’t an ordinary Half-Saint because he has killed a Quasi Emperor. He once slaughtered his way through the Thousand Crane Sect on his own. If you don’t believe me, you can ask the students standing behind you and see if I’m lying!”

“I don’t need to ask them!” Gu Yuncheng spoke coldly, “All I know is that the academy has disregarded our fate for so long, and it has allowed us to be chased after like dogs.”

At this point, he turned around to look at the students standing behind him, “I’m certain that many of you had numerous companions by your sides before this, yet now…. Just take a look! Are they still by your sides? They aren’t! The Mo Clan and Thousand Crane Sect sent their elders and elites to kill us, yet the elites and elders of the academy completely disregarded us, and they allowed us to be pursued and killed. Let me ask all of you one thing! Is it we who have betrayed the academy, or has the academy betrayed us?”

“Gu Yuncheng!” Meanwhile, Zi Nan spoke fiercely, “Are you trying to rebel?”

“Rebel?” Gu Yuncheng spoke coldly, “We just want to live!”

“Live?” Zi Nan gazed at those students behind Gu Yuncheng, “I know that all of you feel resentful because the experts which the Mo Clan and Thousand Crane Sect sent are at the Saint Realm or above, and we aren’t a match for them at all. Moreover, the experts at the Saint Realm of our academy didn’t come to support us. So, it’s normal for all of you to feel resentful. After all, even we felt resentful before this! However….”

Zi Nan’s voice grew louder at this point, “All of you’ve only been thinking about yourselves. Did all of you think about the academy? The academy is surrounded by numerous Quasi Emperors right now! They are in a worse state than we are! I….”

“Then are you saying that we deserve death?” Gu Yuncheng suddenly interrupted Zi Nan and roared furiously, “Are you saying that all of us should die? Zi Nan, you said that Yang Ye will lead us back to the academy. But let me ask you something! The academy is in a worse state, so what are we returning for? Are we returning to give our lives away? Huh?”

Zi Nan’s face turned gloomy. She was about to speak when Qiu Yuan stopped her and said, “Have you still not realized? He has ulterior motives!”

Zi Nan immediately came to an understanding. Only now did she realize that Gu Yuncheng wasn’t complaining about the academy’s lack of action, he had ulterior motives just like Qiu Yuan had said!

Gu Yuncheng glanced at Qiu Yuan and said, “I do have ulterior motives, but they are good intentions. Zi Nan, Qiu Yuan, both of you should be aware of the academy’s current state. Death awaits us both here and there. I don’t think both of you want to die, right?”

Qiu Yuan spoke indifferently, “What are you trying to say?”

Gu Yuncheng glanced at the surroundings and said, “Everyone, based on the current circumstances, there’s only a single way for us to survive, and it’s to leave White Deer Academy and seek protection from somewhere else!”

Clamorous noise instantly arose in the surroundings while all of them gazed at him with disbelief.

Leave White Deer Academy!

Many of them did hold resentment towards the academy, but they’d never thought about leaving it. They naturally had an emotional connection to the academy, and the people of the Central Divine Prefecture would look down on them for betraying White Deer Academy at a time like this. Because White Deer Academy was in a crisis right now!

If a power couldn’t protect its own, then others would view it as a lack of ability; if a disciple of a power were to betray it during a crisis, then not to mention others, many would even look down on themselves. Would anyone think highly of someone who couldn’t go through thick and thin with the power he or she belonged to?

So, when Gu Yuncheng suggested that they left White Deer Academy, many of them revealed hostility in their eyes as they gazed at him, and that even included some of the students who stood behind him.

Gu Yuncheng’s expression changed slightly when he noticed this, but it didn’t take long for him to regain his composure, “Leaving White Deer Academy doesn’t represent betrayal. I….”

Zi Nan interrupted him and asked, “Then what does it represent?”

Gu Yuncheng glanced at everyone, fell silent for a long time, and then said, “Elder Ren, show yourself!”

As soon as he spoke, an old man in an ink black robe appeared here.

The expressions of all the students here changed drastically upon catching sight of the old man!

Because they recognized him! He was an elder of the Law Faction!

Zi Nan gazed at Gu Yuncheng while killing intent arose in her eyes, “You colluded with the Law Faction!”

“Colluded?” Gu Yuncheng laughed coldly, and then he glanced at the surroundings and said, “Do you know why we’re still alive? It wasn’t White Deer Academy but the Law Faction who kept us alive. Because Elder Ren and Martial Ancestor Li asked the Mo Clan and Thousand Crane Sect to spare us. That’s why we’ve been able to live until now. As for the betrayal that Zi Nan spoke of just now…. Hmph! The Law Faction has always been a part of our academy, so how can returning to the Law Faction be considered as betraying the academy? We’re merely forsaking the dark and crossing over to the light!”

“What nonsense!” Zi Nan couldn’t help but curse, “Gu Yuncheng, the Law Faction has become the Mo Clan and Thousand Crane Sect’s dog, and it has slaughtered so many of our fellow students. But you want us to surrender to them and become dogs like them? Gu Yuncheng, have you thought about those students who died at the hands of the Law Faction, Mo Clan, and Thousand Crane Sect? Did you?”

Gu Yuncheng’s face turned unsightly when he heard this. He was about to speak when Elder Ren waved his hand, “Cut the crap. I don’t have the time or patience to listen to your nonsense. Now, if you want to live, then stand behind me. The Law Faction will let bygones be bygones if you do so. You’ll remain a student of ours, and there’ll be no difference between the Law Faction and Scholarly Faction from now on. Remember that you only have one chance. I cherish geniuses, but all of you aren’t enough for us to lower ourselves to recruit all of you!”

The expressions of many students changed when they heard Elder Ren. They knew that not going over was equivalent to death.

Sure enough, Gu Yuncheng immediately went over to Elder Ren.

It didn’t take long for many to start hesitating. Right when another student was about to walk over, Zi Nan suddenly roared loudly, “Yang Ye! Are you still not going to show yourself?”

Yang Ye!

Everyone here was stunned upon hearing her!

Elder Ren was stunned as well!

Suddenly, Yang Ye appeared out of thin air.

Elder Ren’s expression instantly changed drastically when he saw Yang Ye, and he seemed like he was facing a formidable enemy. Yang Ye was naturally not an unfamiliar face to him, and he knew that he was facing an existence who’d killed a Quasi Emperor in the past!

He immediately waved his right hand, and then over a dozen high-rank Saints appeared behind him.

Yang Ye paid no attention to it and just gazed at Zi Nan, “You should have let me show myself later!”

Zi Nan looked straight at him, “Not everyone is unafraid of death like you are. It’s sufficient that they’ve persisted until now without submitting. Moreover, our academy owes it to them because they can’t resist those fellows at all. They should be dealt with by the experts of the academy who are at the Saint Realm. However, the academy didn’t send them here, so it isn’t their fault! You can’t treat them like that! Don’t allow them to make a mistake! Just take it as me begging you to do this!”

She knew that once those students who wanted to live were allowed to take that step, it represented that they would have no way back. Because doing that was equivalent to betrayal. At that time, based on Yang Ye’s character, he would definitely slaughter them. Not to mention Yang Ye, even she would kill them. So, she immediately made Yang Ye show himself!

Why?

Because they didn’t deserve death. So long as Yang Ye showed himself and they hadn’t taken that final step, then they would still be students of the academy, and there would be no misunderstandings between them! But once they were allowed to take that step, then even if Yang Ye didn’t kill them, she would!

Yang Ye gazed at her for a long time and said, “You’re a pretty good senior sister!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and gazed at Elder Ren. The latter was about to speak when Yang Ye suddenly drew his sword and swung it.

A ray of sword energy shot forward!

100 overlapped Heavenrends that were enhanced by 2 types of intents!

Elder Ren’s eyes suddenly opened wide, and then his body was instantly split into 2 at the center.

Hiss!

Blood and innards sprayed all over the ground!

He’d been killed in an instant!